TFR’s Malacca Travel Guide – Part 2 Accomodation

Above photo is the front balcony view from my hostel. Not to mistaken as my room view which has no window to the outside. This is my first time staying in a hostel and the experience overall is not bad. Read on to find out more.

I booked the Cheng Ho Guest House via Hostelworld.com. You will need to pay a small sum of deposit when booking. Print out the confirmation page to bring to the hostel for check in. The hostel is located at 14 Jalan Tukang Emas, 5 minute walk from Jonker Street which is a must go flea market for food and shopping at night.

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Facade

Anyway, my friend and I reached the place slightly before 2pm which was their check-in time. Paid the reception Uncle the remaining amount of the room and we quickly settled in.

The exterior looks quite homely and very oriental with the red lantern and bamboo plants!?

Red wooden chairs in the waiting/lobby area.

A common shared PC.

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My room – a twin ensuite

The rooms are indeed looked alike on their website and agoda.com photos. Again it looks like usual old houses with the yellowing speckled walls.

Twin ensuite room decorated with tropical and local style.

A table, cabinet, mirror and hang rack at the corner.

The temperature is set to 24 degree celsius and if you try to turn it up or down, it will automatically reset back to the default 24. I was freezing cold for the first night as the aircon was blowing directly at me. Luckily for the second night, I realised I can push the aircon panel to further up and hence prevented me from turning into ice cube again.

I know some people are very particular with the bedsheet, pillow and blanket they use outside during travel. Especially if you read or heard story about smelly beds with stained bedsheet that make you feel itchy and infest you with fleas. It is really daunting to sleep in a new places. However, everything in Cheng Ho Hostel was alright. The beds looked clean and smooth. Only thing was the pillow too low for my liking and I had to use my clothes to stack underneath.

See the right side aircon remote control in the photo. It was in a resetting mode.

Bedsheets and blankets looked clean and smooth.

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Bathroom

A usual bathroom you can see in old Singaporean flats or Malaysian houses. A bit of algae along the tiles and edges but still look clean though. My friend and I picked a room which has a bathroom attached as we felt it was more convenient for us. Especially when in the middle of night, you need to travel down to use the toilet. Or you forget to bring the towel but you are trap in the shared bathroom so far from your room.

A narrow bathroom.

A bit of algae along the tiles and edges

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Other room options

I went around the hostel to check up their other room options. They also offered the same room like mine but without the bathroom attached. You can find their common shared bathrooms at the end of the corner at level 1. Their 10-beds dormitory is at level 3 which looks alike NS guys’ dormitory. Overall if you are not picky about sharing the washroom you can get the cheaper option without attached bathroom.

A room with 2 double deckers.

Common shared washing area.

3 bathrooms at level 1.

A better furnished bathroom than our room attached bathroom.

10 beds dormitory.

Their attached 3 bathrooms.

A balcony for hanging clothes.

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Below is my miscellaneous photo gallery.

My room number was 15 which was the second room from level 2.

Second floor balcony facing the front view of hostel.

Second floor corridor.

Free wifi password, other checkin information and tourists’ know-how.

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Cheng Ho Guest House PROS and CONS

Pros

Relatively good service – I request for extra toilet paper and blankets which came to me quite quickly.

Cheap – As I chose a room that came with bathroom, I paid slightly more than a usual hostel room. Per pax per night is RM40. Total spent RM160 for 2 pax and 2 nights. You will pay a deposit on the online booking website, and the remaining amount when you check-in.

Good location – It is 5 minute walk to the famous Jonker Street.

Cons

A not quiet morning – We were woke up at 5am in the Saturday morning. There were 2 temples in front of the hostels. We were not sure which temple was doing the ritual but it certainly woke us up too early. Especially when we were unable to turn in early due to getting use to the new place.

Aircon temperature – For the two nights, the outside temperature was quite cooling. Therefore the aircon temperature was making freezing cold that I requested extra blankets.

No wifi in room – To use wifi, you need to go down to the main living room area to use.

Overall it was a not bad experience. It was my first time staying in hostel and the experience encourages me to stay in hostel for my next travel. However, if I’m going to Malacca again, I believe Cheng Ho Guest House will not be my first choice for accommodation due to the first CON factor listed above.

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Brochure to share

Anyway, below I have scanned a brochure on accommodation around Malacca.